Here is what my suspension band SHOULD look like. The DIY guide was on how make the basic support system out of relatively inexpensive materials and then use something to cover them up. I have had dozens of people try this out with my personal pair and not one of them complained about the looks nor the lack of comfort. I did try the Senn pad and many other types of mods to improve comfort and the suspension mod beats them all by a mile. Also notice that the rods have been pulled nearly all the way down and that the headband has been bent a little to provide better support.

Just how comfortable is the suspension mod? I have two co-workers who have implemented the suspension headband and the Paradox is the only headphone they can wear all day (7 hours+) and not feel the need to remove it or feel the slightest bit of inconvenience.

If the suspension headband looks bad or doesn't improve on comfort, it's because it was not properly implemented but regardless of how it looks...comfort will be the best IMHO.

As in many things "headphone", comfort,sound, looks, etc, these are very subjective things/preferences. BTW your suspension looks great compared to some others. As I said in my post, "it may not be as comfy as yours, but it does the job for me. My preferences are for simplicity and ease of implementation, and for me the Senn pads work well. I certainly respect your ability and thoroughness in this "T50 mod thing" to achieve what you and others see as the best results. I meant no disrespect. I only listen to my phones for 2-3 hours at the most, no marathon 7-8 hours, and my simple mod works well for me. satwilson

Someone said RP2s weren't good rock `phones, so I didn't bother with any while testing. Today I've been going over some my `80s arena/hair rock favs and can say that such comments are complete and utter crap.

Someone said RP2s weren't good rock `phones, so I didn't bother with any while testing. Today I've been going over some my `80s arena/hair rock favs and can say that such comments are complete and utter crap.

I ended up sealing everything, except the pinhole in the baffle and half of one vent. This produces some very tight and fast bass.
Also, I left the dot off the driver and kept the original white fabric. So, they're now mostly RP2s with a few personal taste adjustments. But that's part of the fun of modding.
I was going to buy an HE-500 this month with my tax return, but now I'm not so sure anymore. These RP2s are actually that good.

Just curious, what are your exact mods? I've followed the RP2, but left the white fabric on the driver and my bass is almost nonexistant.

Well I figured it out, it wasn't to do with the paper... the elastic wasn't stretched nearly tightly enough, so there wasn't enough tensile strength to keep the band on top from flopping around and trying to fall off my head. Now the band still flops a little but the elastic pulls it back before it can try that falling-off business.

Actually it clamps tighter than stock now... nice.

I never was able to get my elastics nice and tight... this may be what's keeping me. Another on the list to try :D
Will finally have time on Friday! woot!

Hm... new pads huh. I'd try though for the moment I'm strapped... and I don't know where to buy them!! Aaah availability is always a pain in Canada lol. Scratch that, in Quebec.

How much do FA-003 pads cost? maybe one day I'll finally grab them somewhere somehow. For now I'm saving for an e17.

Really want to try them Paradox too!! Sadly I live in the land of Tim Hortons.

Woops, forgot to add. Can anyone explain what sealing off the vents does exactly? When I was modding my HA-M750 I opted for creating more vents and it gave me better 'soundstage' so I was actually thinking of trying to remove the vent foam on the T50RP for testing. Seeing how everyone is quite adamant about reducing it's size, I'm starting to get a little confused. (also cause I am past bed time! 5h till I gotta wake up again so to bed I go!)

Just curious, what are your exact mods? I've followed the RP2, but left the white fabric on the driver and my bass is almost nonexistant.

Okay, I'll use pics and go over my variations. First, though, I want to thank mrspeakers (you da man), BMF, smeggy, and all others who have contributed, without your efforts we'd have have no pants at all.

This is pretty standard, I did do away with the reflex dot in the final revision, it didn't sound natural. I didn't fill in the vent hole in the baffle and I left the white fabric on the back of the driver alone.
Instead of dynamat, which I don't like working with, I used two 2mm thin foam sheets (available at any craft store) that are cemented together and then cemented to the bottom of the cup. I then filled in all around with clay, and went ahead and filled in 3 of the 4 vent holes of the cup with clay too (the red clay). The big round bumper has half its layers peeled away now to lower its profile. I didn't have Paxmate, but I'm fine with that because the sound is fantastic without it.
I used one and a half large cotton balls, teased out. I did a lot of testing with different volumes of cotton and liked the sound of this best. Now, I put the four little round feet back on their posts, which is tough to do with all that cotton and clay, but it added some tactile bass feel, which for me is a nice addition. I used some cement to affix them and make sure they didn't come off when closing the whole thing up.

On the ear side of the baffle I removed the felt and cut to fit another sheet of the foam, cutting a square out for the driver hole, and then cemented it in place.

After I was done with all that, and finally got the RPs sounding the way I want, I sealed it with hot glue; a dab on the screws, around where the cup seals, and the wire holes. I'm not opening these things again, nope not gonna do it. 40+ hours of tweaking and testing is enough. Again, I left the vent hole in the baffle alone, it really does a make a difference in sound.

Here they are all done, I used a HD580 headband pad and attached it with some self-sticking velcro that I already had. Works great and looks good too. And, of course, I used Shure 840 ear pads to finish them off. They have better isolation over stock and my big ears fit better too.

Oh, and wow are these things heavier. It's not that bad, but I can tell a difference. It's worth it, though. Damn these sound sweet.

I've had my Fostex for two years and I keep thinking that I'll get another pair and play using some ideas I find here and my own using materials I can find nearby. I have some 840 pads on the way and was playing with the suspension mod. I have to say thanks for that one. Eventually I'll find a shoulder pad and do that but presently a sheet of .03 plastic cut to two inches wide by 6 inches with holes does the job nicely. Not much to look at when not on a stand or a head but comfort alone, can't be beat!

--- After trying some various cable replacements, it appears that my solder "dot" on one my drivers has vanished. I'm careful with the iron - properly tin the tip, 15V iron, etc. - yada, yada, yada. Now, my beloved Fostex only have the right channel working. Last evening, I felt as though there had been a death in my family - I actually loved them that much. The updates to them - oh, how the sound changed and morphed into something that one could really appreciate when they would listen to them. Now ... it's gone in just a flash. [insert crying emoticon here]

However, I think I'm going to bite the bullet. They have stock at Amazon where Amazon is fulfilling the orders for one of the vendors. The price is $105.00 for a new pair. However, I can get "next day" shipping and receive them tomorrow- Saturday for just $19.00 more. I'm going to take that option. The vendor that I purchased the original pair from on eBay - SonicFiber, was only charging $83.00 a few weeks back with free shipping. Now, they've jacked their price to $119.00, with free shipping. All the demand for these things is making the price spike a bit.

They are just a "fun" pair of headphones. Even at $125.00 for a complete pair of headphones, I feel a bit less guilty about doing something stupid to them - unlike a $140.00 pair of Magnum drivers.

Wow, SonicFiber jacked it up that hard that fast? I picked mine up from them at the $83.00 price point three weeks ago and never really understood all the gnashing of teeth people had been making about empty stock and inflated prices. Looks like I got in just in time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by wje

--- After trying some various cable replacements, it appears that my solder "dot" on one my drivers has vanished. I'm careful with the iron - properly tin the tip, 15V iron, etc. - yada, yada, yada. Now, my beloved Fostex only have the right channel working. Last evening, I felt as though there had been a death in my family - I actually loved them that much. The updates to them - oh, how the sound changed and morphed into something that one could really appreciate when they would listen to them. Now ... it's gone in just a flash. [insert crying emoticon here]

However, I think I'm going to bite the bullet. They have stock at Amazon where Amazon is fulfilling the orders for one of the vendors. The price is $105.00 for a new pair. However, I can get "next day" shipping and receive them tomorrow- Saturday for just $19.00 more. I'm going to take that option. The vendor that I purchased the original pair from on eBay - SonicFiber, was only charging $83.00 a few weeks back with free shipping. Now, they've jacked their price to $119.00, with free shipping. All the demand for these things is making the price spike a bit.

They are just a "fun" pair of headphones. Even at $125.00 for a complete pair of headphones, I feel a bit less guilty about doing something stupid to them - unlike a $140.00 pair of Magnum drivers.